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Attendance and inclusion support

Education Inclusion Handbook

All information about Southwark Council's support is online for schools and all lead professionals. The handbook is a comprehensive guidance on procedures relating to attendance and inclusion including Southwark’s three stage approach to attendance: https://services.southwark.gov.uk/childcare-and-parenting/children-s-social-care/family-early-help-feh/education-inclusion-handbook

 

Support first

The 'support first' approach within the 'Working Together to Improve School Attendance' (WTTISA) framework emphasises early intervention and a holistic understanding of the factors contributing to pupil absence. Rather than resorting immediately to formal sanctions, the model prioritises meaningful engagement with pupils and their families to identify underlying barriers, such as health concerns, family circumstances, or special educational needs. Schools, often in collaboration with councils and external agencies, then implement tailored support strategies, including academic assistance, adjustments to timetables or mentoring arrangements, uniform provision, and access to health, early help or social care services. Central to this approach is the development of strong, trusting relationships with families, enabling issues to be addressed proactively and stop problems from escalating.

 

Penalty Notices

There has been a concerted effort by the Department for Education (DfE) to ‘streamline’ the Penalty Notice legislation and they have introduced a National Framework for Penalty Notices (see page 56 of WTTISA). The new framework is firmly embedded in the ‘support first’ approach and Southwark’s Penalty Notice Code of Conduct reflects that ‘support first’ way of working. The Education Inclusion Team will be available to guide the school through the Penalty Notice referral process and answer any questions you may have.  There is an updated Penalty Notice Code of Conduct and online referral which can be found in the Education Inclusion Handbook.

 

Training Opportunities

The Education Inclusion Team (EIT) are offering training focused on the WTTISA statutory guidance and the new Penalty Notice guidance. These sessions will provide valuable insight into best practices and effective strategies for handling attendance issues. Schools are encouraged to discuss registration with Kym Winup, Service Manager for Attendance and Inclusion on kym.winup@southwark.gov.uk for these sessions to enhance their understanding and implementation of attendance policies.

Course: Attendance and inclusion matters: Keeping children in education

This course covers:

  • One local authority plan
  • A guide for lead professionals
  • The impact of non-attendance
  • Educational disadvantage, neglect and barriers to school attendance
  • School attendance and the role of Children’s Social Care, Youth Justice and Supporting Families Programme
  • A new way of thinking and the three-stage approach
  • Interventions and supervision

Participants will be able to:

  • Understand the crucial role of the lead professional in promoting school attendance
  • Explore the wider context of school attendance
  • Explain the effect of barriers to attendance as well as the impact of school non-attendance itself
  • Get familiar with the new three-stage approach, and specific steps to be followed when working with a child or young person who is persistently absent from school


Studybugs

Thank you to the schools sharing live pupil and attendance data with the local authority via Studybugs. This data helps us create a targeted attendance strategy to support at-risk children. We are pleased to announce that from September 2024, Studybugs can retrieve live suspension data directly from your system, eliminating the need for manual notifications to inform the local authority of suspensions. For schools not yet sharing data, please note that from August 2024 all schools are required to allow the LA access to their admissions and attendance registers. Southwark Council has chosen Studybugs for secure and timely data access, and the cost is covered by the LA. We believe Studybugs offers a convenient and secure compliance method. Schools not using Studybugs must provide LA officers access through another method and still submit suspensions manually. To register with Studybugs please visit https://studybugs.com/la/southwark/register . To start sharing live suspensions data simply email support@studybugs.com where a Studybugs technician will assist with setting up the link. 

 

Targeting Support Meetings (TSMs) and Team Around the School (TAS) Meetings

Southwark are committed to meeting the duties as outlined in the WTTISA guidance and Targeting Support Meetings (TSM) are a significant part of these duties so we can identify children who are severely absent without a plan, or persistently absent in need of a multi-agency approach so that children, and young people and their families receive support as early as possible. In primary schools the current TAS meetings will incorporate the TSM component. The LA will have contacted you to arrange your TAS/TSM meeting over this academic year.

 

Department for Education Attendance Toolkit

For resources and guidance on improving school attendance, please refer to the Department for Education's School Attendance Tool Kit:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance/toolkit-for-schools-communicating-with-families-to-support-attendance

 

Feedback from the Keeping Children in Education Event

Durign the last academic year we held  'Keeping Children in Education' events, which garnered positive feedback from attendees. Schools and partners contributed to the events and participants highlighted the importance of Attendance is Everybody’s Business and communication and relationships are vital in improve the life changes of our young people. The insights gathered will help shape future events and strengthen our collaborative approach to education. We are excited to announce plans for further 'Keeping Children in Education' events scheduled for this academic year . Details regarding the date and registration will be shared soon, and we encourage all schools to participate.

Thank you for your collaborative and ongoing efforts to support student attendance and engagement in education. Together, we can make a difference!